How is someone supposed to get into a service academy if they can't pass tryouts for any high school sports?
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Anonymous
| I just hate how competitive the world is. I don't understand how kids get into top colleges when basic extracurriculars are impossible to get into |
Anonymous
| They can do non-cut sports, weight lifting and all sorts of things. |
Anonymous
This. Also, service academies and serving as an officer are high pressure environments. If your student struggles as it is in their high school environment do not push them towards a service academy. Not everyone makes it through academies and after sophomore year you are on the hook for the cost of training $$$. The outcomes for service academy dropouts are far worse than students who attend other "lesser" institutions or enlist. Don't be tempted to push your student along for the siren song of free college. It is isn't free it is paid for in different ways. |
Anonymous
But to score high on the Candidate Fitness Assessment, you do need to be extremely fit. And for West Point, Annapolis, and Air Force, you'll need to be a leader too. Just weight lifting isn't going to cut it. To get a Congressional Nomination and an acceptance, you pretty much need to be captain of the team. |
Anonymous
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I’m a grad, and an interviewer.
I would recommend cross country, track, swimming … stuff like that. Be consistent and dedicated, but you don’t need to be a star. That will show commitment, and you’ll be in good shape for the candidate tests. Do at least one of the summer seminar programs, if possible, before senior year. Take hard classes. Be open to other commissioning paths. They want people who really want to serve as officers, not JUST go to an Academy. Good luck, and let me know if I can answer anything else. |
Anonymous
| You can be profoundly athletic and fit and never ever be on any team. |
Anonymous
| Not related at all....look at softball, FH, baseball, wrestling... none of those kids could pass the academy fitness test if ALL they did was their sport at high school. None of them. |
Anonymous
| If someone can't pass the fitness test, they are not cut out for military careers. |
Anonymous
Just like top sports team, most kids don’t get into top colleges. Even excellent kids don’t make it into top colleges. |
Anonymous
| Rowing is a good bet too if your school or a nearby club offers it. |
Anonymous
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Are school sports required to enter into a service academy?
Off the top of my head some of the people, both males and females, that went into a service academy from high school did more individual sports like cross country and tennis. This was more than twenty years ago. And looking at the web sites: https://www.westpoint.edu/admissions/steps-admission/candidate-fitness-assessment https://www.usna.edu/Admissions/Candidate-Fitness-Assessment.php The requirements don't look that intensive. The biggest question might be with the pull ups and based off of a quick look it doesn't look like either site lists minimum score. But a quick google search says the minimum is 4. But also this fitness requirement is only ten percent of the application. The shuttle run might be an issue, depending on the requirements. Going in enlisted (boot camp) the minimum to be able to get into basic training was bare minimum, like 11 push ups or something like that. But with that being said, there was a notable difference between the people that did team sports and the people that didn't. And the drill instructors loved the former football players. Just the way they carried themselves and things like that. You kind of see it out in the regular world too. So it's a big reason why I want my kids to have some experience in team sports. |
Anonymous
| My DS attended the Naval Academy and he dropped out after his 2nd year there. Good thing about the academy is that you do NOT have to pay back anything if you drop out after your 2nd year. |
Anonymous
|
8% acceptance rate
It’s not supposed to be easy Enlist if you want to serve |
Anonymous
The minimums on the fitness test aren’t going to get you in. The average for pull ups is 10 and the average for the run is 6:45 (male). You need to be very fit to get the average for all components which have to be done back to back. |
Anonymous
Strange you would include wrestling in that group. It is probably one of the best sports for fitness, with many teams including multi-mile runs, strength training, etc. into wrestling practices/workouts. You know wrestling and pro wrestling aren't the same, right? |